Throughout this process I've left Barrett the boy and have become Barrett the man. A man who released the shame he felt for wanting to love another man. A man who addressed issues that were holding him back. A man who has started to live authentically. A real man.

It turns out that our willingness to listen as well as talk -- a combination we can call Coming Out 2.0 -- not only affects those who are conflicted about LGBT people or prejudiced against us. It also keeps their hearts and minds changed for a long time.

On Saturday night I was able to sit back and watch my team capture the Yonkers City Championship. It was our second title in the past four years, but the first tournament championship since coming out. The next day, a rare in-season off day, I was able to sit back and reflect.

Recently a colleague put me in touch with Orie Givens IV, the host of Queer Minded, to discuss issues that may be encountered by LGBTQ people during the holidays. Here are potential scenarios that could apply to you as an LGBTQ person during the holidays.

I spent my 20's making no apologies for my overt sexuality. After all, if straight guys could construct their entire social lives around the hunt for tail, then why couldn't I? Especially since I was so good at it...

A year ago I was sitting at home in Australia, debating whether I should post my coming-out video. I had recorded the video in September and had let it collect dust on my desktop for almost two months. I was anxious about what would happen if I revealed this part of myself to the rest of the world. The tape was a reaction to one of the scariest moments of my career.

Here was the ultimate mom test. Was I the real deal? At this crucial moment, probably the most important one of my life, my mind had shut down, and I'd lost my voice. I'd expected to perform much better. This had been a D-minus at best.

Overall, Albert Eisenberg had a pretty great coming out experience and was given lots of support by his family and friends. There were two experiences he had, though, that show that there's still a lot of progress that needs to happen in terms of LGBTQ acceptance and understanding.

Upon coming out publicly in May 2010, I thought that that would be last time I would ever have to come out. Boy, was I wrong. Since then I have had to come out again and again. But last week I found myself in a coming-out situation that I had never experienced before, and I wasn't sure what to do.

Abby took her girlfriend home to Minneapolis over Labor Day weekend, and, at the insistence of her father, her girlfriend joined them for the family lunch with Grandpa. After an awkward beginning, with Grandpa not knowing who Abby's surprise guest was, Abby's dad stepped in and began the conversation.

I connected immediately to the messages of strength, forgiveness, love and finding wisdom. I got involved in the vocal team and started singing during service on Sundays. It wasn't until a few months in that I realized I had never mentioned I was gay.